A cigarette sidestream smoke treatment material made from a sheet of non-combustible active components provides a porous structure for treating sidestream smoke. The treatment material, as used in combination with a cigarette having conventional cigarette paper, provides a low sidestream smoke emitting cigarette unit. The material has a porosity which encourages a conventional free-burn rate of the cigarette. The material may comprise sorbent capable of sorbing components of the sidestream smoke and an oxygen storage component which releases oxygen at free-burn rate temperatures to ensure that conventional free-burn rate is maintained and to enhance the oxidation treatment of the captured non-aqueous components. Preferably, an oxidation catalyst is included in the material and most desirably the oxygen storage component may have as well the dual function of an oxidation catalyst. Particularly preferred compounds which perform the dual function are oxides of cerium.
Smoking of tobacco products produce three types of smoke, namely mainstream smoke, exhaled smoke and sidestream smoke, particularly as it would relate to the smoking of cigarettes. Filter materials abound for use in removing sidestream smoke and exhaled smoke in somewhat confined areas where people might be smoking. It is generally understood that sidestream smoke accounts for the majority of smoke emitted during the smoking process. There has therefore been significant interest in reducing sidestream smoke and this might be accomplished by one or more of the following techniques:
i) alter the tobacco composition and packing characteristics of the tobacco rod charge in the cigarette or cigar;
ii) alter the cigarette paper wrapping of the cigarette or cigar;
iii) alter the diameter of the cigarette as well as its tobacco composition and/or provide a device on the cigarette or cigar to contain and/or control sidestream smoke emissions.
Various cigarette tobacco and cigarette paper formulations have been suggested which in one way or another affect the free-burn rate of the cigarette or cigar with a view to reducing sidestream smoke and/or achieving an extinguishment of the lit cigarette or cigar when left idle over an extended period of time. Such designs include a selection of tobacco blends, smaller cigarette diameters, densities and multiple layers of cigarette tobacco in the tobacco charge. Such selected designs can appreciably retard the free-burn rate of the cigarette and hence, increase the number of puffs obtained per unit length of cigarette. Either in combination with tobacco selection and/or construction or independently of the tobacco make up, various cigarette paper compositions can also affect free-burn rate of the cigarette. Such paper compositions include the use of chemicals to retard free-burn rate, chemicals to reduce sidestream smoke, multiple wrappings of different types of cigarette paper of the same or different characteristics and reduction of air permeability. See for example, Canadian Patents 1,239,783 and 1,259,008 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,108,151; 4,225,636; 4,231,377; 4,420,002; 4,433,697; 4,450,847; 4,461,311; 4,561,454; 4,624,268; 4,805,644; 4,878,507; 4,915,118; 5,220,930 and 5,271,419 and U.K. patent application 2 094 130. Cigarettes of smaller diameter have also been tried such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,637,410.
Various devices have been provided which contain the cigarette, primarily for purposes of preventing accidental fires. They may or may not at the same time include various types of filters to filter and thereby reduce the amount of sidestream smoke. Examples of such devices are shown in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,211,071; 3,827,444; 3,886,954 and 4,685,477.
Further, various types of cigarette holders have been made available which serve the primary feature of minimizing staining of the smoker""s fingers. Such devices may be connected to the cigarette tip and/or mounted on the cigarette, such as shown in U.S. Pat. No. 1,862,679. Other types of cigarettes which are enclosed in wrappers which are perforated in one way or another to provide for safety features and/or control of sidestream smoke are described in Canadian Patent 835,684 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,220,418 and 5,271,419
Devices which are mountable on the cigarette and which may be slid along the cigarette to control rate of combustion and hence free-burn rate are described in U.K. patent 928,089; U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,819 and International application WO 96/22031. The U.K. patent describes a combustion control device for cigarettes by limiting the flow of air to the cigarette burning ember. By retarding combustion of the cigarette, it is suggested that only half of the conventional amount of tobacco need be incorporated in the cigarette and result thereby in a shorter cigarette. The air flow limiting device may be provided by an array of apertures in the device with variable opening or by crimped portions in the device providing longitudinal openings along part of the cigarette. U.S. Pat. No. 4,638,819 describes a ring which is placed on the cigarette and slid therealong during the smoking process to control the free-burn rate of the cigarette and reduce sidestream smoke. The ring is of solid material, preferably metal, which causes considerable staining and due to variable cigarette diameters cannot reliably provide the desired degree of sidestream smoke reduction and extinguishing times.
An alternative ring system is described in applicant""s published PCT application WO 96/22031. The device is provided with an inner ring which surrounds and contacts a conventional cigarette perimeter where the inner ring is of porous material. The outer ring encases the inner ring to direct air flow along the length dimension of the porous inner ring. The tortuous paths in the porous material of the inner ring controls the rate of air diffusion to the lit cigarette coal and thereby controls with the objective to reduce the free-burn rate of the cigarette. The porous material enhances the control of sidestream smoke emitted by the lit cigarette. The device may optionally extend up to one-half the length of the cigarette where air would have to flow along the inner porous ring to the burning coal.
Other systems which have been designed to control sidestream smoke are described in published PCT application WO 95/34226 and U.S. Pat. No. 4,685,477 issued Aug. 11, 1987; U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,955 issued Jan. 14, 1997 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,838 issued Apr. 21, 1992. These references describe various tubular configurations in which a tobacco element is placed in an attempt to minimize cigarette sidestream emission.
Various types of ceramic constituents have been used in cigarette structures including insulating tubes for cigarettes as well as insulating tubes for cigarette smoke aerosol generating devices. U.S. Pat. No. 4,915,117 describes a thin sheet of ceramic which is substituted for cigarette paper to reduce organic substances given off during the burning of conventional cigarette paper. Insulated ceramic sleeves are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,105,838 and 5,159,940. U.S. Pat. No. 5,105,838 describes a cigarette unit having a thin tobacco rod of a circumference of about 12.5 mm. The insulating ceramic sleeve has low heat conductivity and is porous. In order to achieve reduction in sidestream smoke emissions from the burning tobacco rod, the free-burn rate is reduced by the use of a low porosity wrap over the porous ceramic element where the wrap has a permeability less than about 15 Coresta units.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,592,955 describes a porous shell which is re-usable and non-combustible for concealing and retaining a rod of smokeable material before, during and after smoking. Reduction of sidestream smoke emitted from this device is provided by an outer wrap for the shell which has a permeability of less than 40 Coresta units where the shell has a radial thickness of about 0.25 mm to 0.75 mm. The wrap controls the overall porosity of the device and thereby controls free-burn rate of the cigarette and reduces sidestream smoke developed during intervals between puffs. The device includes an air permeable cap at the open end of the tube. The non-combustible shell may include bands of metal which act as heat sinks to reduce the free-burn rate of the tobacco rod.
Catalytic materials have been used in smoking devices such as in the tobacco and particularly in cigarette smoke filters to convert mainstream smoke constituents usually by oxidation as taught in U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,632, U.K. Patent 1 435 504 and published EP patent applications 107 471 and 658 320. Catalysts have also been included in cigarette papers for wrapping tobacco such as described in Canadian Patent 604,895 and U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,182,348 and 5,386,838. Adsorptive materials, such as zeolites have been incorporated in the tobacco as well as the cigarette filter. Zeolites adapted for this use are described in published European patent application EP 740 907, where such zeolites have pore sizes within the range of 5 to 7 xc3x85.
Although these various devices have met with varying degrees of success in controlling sidestream smoke emissions from a burning cigarette, the various embodiments of this invention provide a highly porous sidestream smoke treatment material which is capable of treating cigarette tobacco sidestream smoke in a surprisingly superior manner while the cigarette is permitted to burn at conventional free-burn rates.
In order to facilitate the description of this invention the term tobacco rod or tobacco charge shall be used in referencing cigarette, cigars, cigarillo, tobacco rod in a wrapper, a tobacco plug, wrapped tobacco or the like. It is also understood that when the term cigarette is used, it is interchangeable with cigar, cigarillo and other rod shaped smoking products.
Accordingly, the invention provides in an aspect thereof the use of a treatment material in a process for treating cigarette sidestream smoke to remove visible smoke particles, aerosols and convert gases with off odours.
According to another aspect of the invention, a low sidestream smoke emitting cigarette unit comprises:
i) a cigarette with conventional cigarette paper surrounding a tobacco rod of the cigarette;
ii) a non-combustible material for treating sidestream smoke, surrounding and being substantially in contact with the conventional cigarette paper of a tobacco rod portion of the cigarette; the material having a porosity which encourages a conventional free-burn rate for the cigarette within the material;
iii) the material comprises an oxygen storage component which releases oxygen at free-burn rate temperatures adjacent a burning coal of the cigarette whereby such released oxygen:
a) compensates for the material reducing rate of oxygen diffusion to a burning coal to ensure the conventional free-burn rate, and
b) contributes to the oxidation treatment of components of sidestream smoke.
According to another aspect of the invention, a cigarette unit comprises:
i) a cigarette with cigarette paper surrounding a tobacco rod of the cigarette;
ii) a non combustible material surrounding and in substantial contact with an outer periphery of the cigarette paper, the material having a porosity which encourages a free-burn rate characteristic of the cigarette;
iii) the material comprises a substantially hydrophobic sorbent capable of sorbing non-aqueous components of the sidestream smoke emitted from a burning coal of the cigarette, and an oxygen storage component which releases oxygen at temperatures found adjacent a burning coal of the cigarette whereby such released oxygen:
a) compensates for the material reducing rate of oxygen diffusion to a burning coal to ensure its free-burn rate, and
b) contributes to the oxidation treatment of components of sidestream smoke.
According to another aspect of the invention, a cigarette unit comprises a cigarette and a treatment material surrounding and substantially in contact with cigarette paper of the cigarette, the treatment material having a porosity which encourages conventional free-burn rate of the cigarette and comprises an oxidation catalyst which facilitates oxidation treatment of sidestream smoke emitted from a burning coal of the cigarette, the cigarette paper decoupling the sidestream smoke treatment reaction from generation of mainstream smoke during cigarette puff.
According to a further aspect of the invention, a method of treating sidestream smoke emitted by a burning cigarette having a sidestream smoke treatment material surrounding and substantially in contact with cigarette paper of a cigarette, the material having a porosity which encourages a conventional free-burn rate for the cigarette and comprises a sorbent and an oxygen storage component which releases oxygen at free-burn rate temperatures adjacent a burning coal of the cigarette, the method comprises:
i) sorbing non-aqueous components of sidestream smoke emitted by burning the cigarette and holding the components;
ii) releasing treated volatiles which permeate the material and are invisible in atmosphere.
According to a further aspect of the invention, sheet material for application to a cigarette to reduce sidestream smoke, comprises a composition of substantially hydrophobic sorbent, sheet reinforcement and an oxygen storage component which releases oxygen at free-burn rate temperatures adjacent a burning coal of a cigarette, the sheet material having the characteristics of:
i) a porosity in the range of at least about 200 Coresta units;
ii) a pore size of about 50 xc3x85 to about 2 microns;
iii) a BET surface area for the composition greater than about 20 m2/g;
iv) a density of about 0.3 to about 0.8 g/cc; and
v) a sheet thickness of about 0.04 mm to about 1 mm.